I crumbled the paper in my hand to a ball. My mind reeled while a slow thrumming started in my chest. Noah Freaking Miller knew about me and now he was playing a very dangerous game because the handle I had on my impulses was getting smaller by the day. Sure, I felt much better after slaughtering an innocent creature but that didn't mean the rage was gone. It only meant that I might take a second longer to attack him.  

The anger that I tried so hard to suppress lit up like a Christmas tree in my chest, spreading to my limbs and pulling them taut. I marched to my first class with my mind made up. I wasn't going to let him bully or threaten me. 

So he saw me but why not go to the police? Why leave a cryptic note in my locker? If there was one thing I knew about myself it was that I hated not having answers. It's the reason I studied hard for tests and excelled academically.

Teachers droned on about assignments I couldn't care less about. Other kids kept shooting the lone glance in my direction before turning back to their friends to talk about me in hushed whispers. I didn't care. All I wanted was to shake Noah repeatedly until he told me everything he saw. Not even Leah's sullen glances and worried expression would take my mind off Noah. 

Every muscle in my body coiled with nervous tension and low boiling rage. I wanted to scream, loud enough to burst everyone's eardrums.

This isn't fair!

I could feel my grades slipping. I could even feel all the hard work over the past four years crumble to dust right before my eyes, unable to stop it. Everything I've worked so hard for was slipping through my fingers like fine sand. It made me furious. The anger bubbled beneath the surface until I was sure it would boil over the brim.

How could this be happening?

One moment I was on top of the world, the last stretch of a long run. When you force your muscles to hold on just a few more minutes so you can clear the finishing line. In one fell swoop, everything got stripped away almost instantly.

The lunch bell rang and I jumped from my seat. I wasn't even aware of what class I just had let alone the homework, in all fairness, I didn't give a crap. Last night was so vividly imprinted in my brain. One word came to mind.

Monster.

I walked through the cafeteria that was already filling up with hungry students, but I had a single-minded goal. To find Noah Miller and to make him talk. My eyes roamed the students that entered but I couldn't spot him anywhere. Then I remembered that Noah sat on the bleachers at lunchtime.

Turning on my heel I marched to sport fields. The wind had picked up blowing my hair across my face. The air had grown chillier in the last week, finally welcoming fall.

Noah was standing with his back against a large oak tree, casually leaning to the side as if he didn't have a care in the world. As if he hadn't driven me crazy with a single note. Well, that changed the moment his gaze locked on mine. I didn't slow down, instead, I took bigger steps until I face facing him head-on. Then again, I had to tilt my head back just so I could look him square in his eyes. 

Noah blinked once in surprise but it was quickly replaced with a cocky grin. My blood boiled as I envisioned myself smacking the grin off his face. Then, I tossed the rolled up piece of paper against his chest where it bounced off and tumbled to the ground. A look of disbelief settled on his features but was quickly replaced by shock.

"What the hell is that, Miller?"

He looked at me and then back to the letter. His bravado seemed to evaporate into thin air. "So you were there last night?"

Why did he seem shocked? He left the note in my locker, so he must have known it was me. Unless he wasn't certain of what he saw, then the note was just to confirm his suspicions. And I had fallen blindly for it.

"Man I really thought I was seeing things again..." his eyes widened as he looked back at me "What the hell are you?"

I pushed him against the tree, my forearm placed on his chest pinning him against the bark. He tried to move but I just applied more pressure. "Firstly, this has got nothing to do with you, and secondly," I let my anger dissolve into my features, "don't even think about telling anyone what you saw."

Noah's eyes were wide with fear and I could feel the way his body shook. I let my threat sink in. I couldn't have Noah Miller running around blabbing his head off to anyone who would listen.

"Are we clear?" I asked since Noah seemed too shocked to form words.

He nodded his head and I let him go. Giving him one final look, I turned and walked back to the school building. I now had two people that I really needed to avoid. My best friend and Noah freaking Miller. Luck seemed to be on my side, as I didn't run into them for the remainder of the day. Albeit I was actively avoiding them.

I saw nothing but blackness, the silence was deafening and I couldn't move. A face came into view, yellow teeth against stark white skin that was peeling away from the muscle, big gaping wounds over the neck and torso of a distinctly female body. Jaws crunched together in a sickening crack. I tried to run, to scream but my body remained frozen, the cry of terror lodged in my throat.  

Her hair was stark white, matted and plastered against her head, her cheeks had completely sunken in and her lips were all but gone. By the time her body had come into view, I could smell the rotting flesh that burned the back of my throat until the bile rose. My heart smashed against my rib-cage, so hard I thought it would snap the bones.

Blood red eyes pinned my legs to the ground, all while the creature slowly advanced forward. Fear so great I could actually taste it shook my body and sizzled down my spine. Those eyes bore into mine, chilling me to the bone. This was true fear, undiluted, and consuming.

Then she pounced,  painfully pushing me to the ground. The moment my back connected with the floor she sunk those rotten teeth into the exposed flesh on my shoulder. The scream I thought stuck came out so loud I thought my ears would bleed. Pain radiated through my arm and shoulder like fire and tears stung my eyes. 

But she wasn't done, no she was just starting and I couldn't fight her. She ripped into my flesh rip after agonizing rip until I tasted blood in my mouth. She kept peeling the skin away, digging those crooked fingers further into the wound making me gasp in pain. I couldn't get away, no matter how much I kicked or screamed. 

I was going to die.

I sat up in bed, my heart thundering in my chest and throat hoarse. The duvet was tangled around my legs and I kicked them off, the need to have my legs free nearly overwhelming. Seconds later my mom burst into the room followed by a very sleepy Leland. He rubbed out the sleep from his eyes with the back of his hand before his blue eyes found mine.

My mom looked at me with her hair in disarray and I gave her a small if not genuine smile. She frowned, her eyes darting between me and Leland, "Go back to bed sweetie, Syd just had a bad dream."

Leland looked at me and walked over to my bed and hopped up, he threw his scrawny little arms around my neck and pulled me close, "I also have bad dreams, Syd, it's okay."

Tears sprung to my eyes and I hugged Leland close, his warmth comforting me in the aftermath of my horrific dream.

"Leland get back to bed you have school tomorrow, " Mom said.

Leland let go and shuffled out of my room. Mom waited for his bedroom door to close before turning back to me.

"Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?"

I was far from okay, that was more than a nightmare I could smell the foul stench of death as if that thing was standing right in front of me. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't tell my mother that.

"No, I can't actually remember anything." I lied, keeping my eyes on my mother's.

She always knew when I was lying, but lately, I had gotten quite good at it.

She sighed. "Get some sleep it's still early."

She quietly shut my door and left me to my own emotions. I took a few calming breaths, the dream still very sharp in my mind.

I snatched my phone from the nightstand and checked the time, two 'o'clock in the morning. Sighing, I got out of bed. Sleeping now was going to be close to impossible so instead, I opted for a shower.

By six in the morning, I resembled a raccoon. I had dark circles under my eyes and my face was stark white.

I went downstairs and Leland was sitting at the kitchen table playing with his cereal, ambling past him I ruffled his hair.

"Morning squirt, you should be eating those you know, " I said pointing to his bowl.

Leland gave me a toothy grin. "They need to be soft first, everyone knows that."

I chuckled, he was a bizarre child but I wouldn't want anyone else for a brother. I made my coffee so strong that it wouldn't surprise me if it walked out of the cup on its own. I needed the boost and it actually tasted better that way.

I wanted to be snarky with Leland when I was reminded of how he comforted me last night. My retort died on my lips.

Mom came downstairs already dressed for work she planted a kiss on Leland's head and gave me a side hug.

"Are you sure you can drop Leland off today?" she asked me.

"Yeah, I mean the elementary school is on my way. It shouldn't be a problem."

Mom gave me a strange look, shrugging her shoulders as she grabbed the keys off the counter and hurried out the door. When Leland was done with his cereal he hopped off his chair, scraping it across the tiles and ran upstairs. Moments later he came back down with his book bag.

"You ready Lee?"

He just looked at me with big blue eyes, his blonde hair jutting out in every way possible.

Gently weaving my fingers through his hair I said: "You need a haircut."

Leland whacked my hand away and scrunched up his face, "Nah ah, don't you know everyone's wearing their hair like this, it's called the style."

And there is that attitude I know and love. Leland gripped my hand and we walked out the door after I made sure everything was locked then we started our track to school. Usually, we would walk through Wickery road but after my dream, I was reluctant to be so close to the woods.

"Wait, why are we going this way?"

"We're walking through town today. I'm already late." I said.

I gave Leland a look that meant no more questions. As we walked on Leland cheerfully chatted about some video game he would be playing at a friend's house that afternoon. I tuned him out, my mind focused on my nightmare. It put me on edge, the dream seemed so real even the pain of having my flesh ripped to ribbons felt real. I looked at the tree branches that peeked out from the top of the buildings around us. A shudder ran down my spine and I quickly looked away.

We reached Brookfield Elementary and I let go of Leland's hand. He bounced into the school grounds and I stayed put until his spiky blond head disappeared behind the doors.

I trailed the last ten minutes to the high school in silence. My thoughts consumed me but maybe that was a good thing. I needed to think rationally about this. Something attacked me and maybe, just maybe, it was the creature in my nightmare. I tried hard to grasp the memories of that night but nothing seemed to stand out. If that was the thing that attacked me how did I even survive?

I needed to figure out a way to get my memories back but with a twelve-hour gap, anything could have happened. By the time I reached school, I had a throbbing headache and frustration coiled my insides.

I had to find out what happened to me. This didn't seem like one of those see-no-evil situations.

Even though fear slipped coldly into my heart, I knew I would have to go back to the place where it all happened. I would have to go back to the woods to kick start my memory.